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Brian Cleland
| cityofbirth = Motherwell | countryofbirth = Scotland | dateofdeath = | cityofdeath = Chapman | countryofdeath = St. Gregory | height = | position = Midfielder | currentclub = | clubnumber = | youthyears = | youthclubs = Motherwell | years = | clubs = | caps(goals) = | nationalyears = | nationalteam = | nationalcaps(goals) = | manageryears = 1992-2012 | managerclubs = FC Chapman }} Brian Owen Cleland (August 10, 1947 – September 11, 2019) was a Scottish professional football player and manager. He was best known for his 20-year career as manager of FC Chapman in St. Gregory, where he won six League A championships and four SGFA Cup titles. Along with his chief rival and Bonneville United counterpart, Richard Berghuis, Cleland is credited with bringing a European-style system of youth academy-level coaching, scouting and training to the Gregorian game. The two clubs would go on to dominate the Gregorian domestic game for the next two decades, and remain perennial contenders today. Cleland's efforts while at FC Chapman are credited by Gregorian football press as being "responsible for the exponential growth in investment by other clubs all over St. Gregory into developing the best of their talent, ultimately raising the level of competition across the league." Early life Cleland was born in Motherwell, near Glasgow, and was the second-oldest of six children. Managing career FC Chapman In the summer of 1992, Cleland visited St. Gregory on an invitation from FC Chapman, who were seeking their first trophy as they had not finished higher than fifth in their eleven seasons in the SGFA. Cleland was officially introduced as Chapman manager on July 14, 1992. Cleland told reporters prior to his first season that he was implementing a five-year plan for the club with the goal of providing both at least one league and cup trophy in that time. He acquired several new players including striker Chris Barton, a fellow Scot, and along with Richard Berghuis (who was appointed manager of Bonneville United in the same year), is credited with introducing European training methods to St. Gregory. In Cleland's first season, 1992-93, Chapman finished 6th in League A but reached the 1993 SGFA Cup Final, where they faced a New Castle side that had won four league titles and two cups in the previous seven seasons. Despite being underdogs and facing plenty of early pressure from the Bonneville club, Chapman held out for a 1-1 score at the end of regulation, then won the match in the final minute of extra time through John Gamble to give Chapman their first silverware. Two seasons of building followed, during which Chapman finished 5th in League A both times. In 1994, Cleland oversaw the development of the FC Chapman Academy which transformed the club's existing youth program into a system for harnessing young talent. During the 1995-96 season, Cleland's key moves included signing young goalkeeper Ben Berthelsen from Otway Town. He also promoted Jarrod Shannon, a member of the first Chapman Academy graduating class, to the first team. Shannon made his debut for the club on November 4, 1995, and scored with his first touch as Chapman beat Midland International. By March 1996, Chapman had taken first place in League A and they never relinquished it, going on to win the first league title in the club's history and achieving Cleland's goal of league and cup trophies during his first five years. The club also reached the 1996 SGFA Cup Final, but were denied a double by Banks City, who won the match 1-0. After two years in a row finishing runners-up behind Bonneville United, Cleland stepped down as manager of the club on July 2, 2012, following a 20-year tenure at the position. Cleland appointed his former assistant, Matthew Frame, to replace him. Death On the morning of September 11, 2019, Cleland suffered a stroke at his Chapman home and died later that same day, at the age of 72. Legacy Cleland's effect on FC Chapman was felt long after his departure from the sideline. Following the club's 2013-14 League A championship, the first of what would ultimately become three in a row, Cleland's replacement, Matthew Frame, dedicated the title win to Cleland, saying, "this is, without question, Brian's team. All I did was shuffle some furniture; this is the house that Brian Cleland built." In 2015, the FC Chapman Center for Fitness and Football Excellence was renamed the Cleland Center in his honor. Category:Manager pages Category:FC Chapman managers Category:People from Scotland